CJS 3312-501
Abusive Drug Users: Mothers or
Monsters?
I believe that
pregnant women who choose to use drugs abusively, potentially harming fetuses
should be prosecuted to the highest extent possible. The analogy of a pregnant mother abusing
drugs is that of a person tied down and these drugs being administered to that
person without them being able to express their will against it. In this country, if one person kills another,
they are labeled as a murderer, usually convicted, and sent to prison for a
long term if not sentenced to death. An
innocent baby has no choice as to what it is exposed to in the first nine
months of development. The mother is expected
to be responsible enough to ensure healthy and substance free development within
these crucial months. If the mother
cannot sufficiently care for and protect the growing fetus, then she should not
have children in the first place. Every
woman has the right to bear children.
With this right, comes responsibility and if a woman cannot be
responsible, this right should be stripped from her.
A large problem
in prosecuting pregnant drug abusers is how the court views the fetus. Is the fetus a living person, or is it not a
person until birth? In Roe v. Wade, the United States Supreme Court held that at no
stage of development are fetuses persons under the law. In Planned
Parenthood v. Casey, Justice Stevens said, “as a matter of federal
constitutional law, a developing organism that is not yet a ‘person’ does not
have what is sometimes described as a ….
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